Paisley Strong
Blog Posts
Articles and musings on what it’s like to be a widow, stories of acceptance, healing, and hope for right now and in the future, and guidance through our L.I.V.E. framework.
What to Expect Emotionally in the First Weeks of Widowhood
No one can truly prepare you for the first weeks of widowhood, where even taking things "one day at a time" can feel entirely too big. It feels incredibly cruel that while you are suffering from profound shock, the world immediately demands a long to-do list of life-altering decisions. This guide serves as your oxygen mask, breaking down those heavy logistical tasks into small, manageable steps so you can focus on simply breathing.
Survival Mode: 5 Things I Wish I Knew in the First Weeks of Widowhood
When a spouse dies before their time, you aren't just grieving the past—you’re grieving the future you were supposed to build together. In the overwhelming fog of those first few weeks, it's hard to know how to survive. Here are 5 honest, unspoken truths to help you navigate a timeline that has been completely upended.
Holding Their Grief While Carrying Your Own: Helping Children Navigate the Loss of a Parent
When your spouse dies, you are instantly handed a dual burden: navigating your own immense grief while shepherding your children through theirs. While managing both losses can easily feel like a recipe for emotional burnout, there are ways to hold space for your children's pain while still protecting your own healing.
The Gift of Belonging
Over the years, I've come to believe something important. The opposite of widowhood is not remarriage. The opposite of widowhood is belonging.
“Living On”
After losing her husband suddenly, one widow shares the quiet journey of “living on” — learning how to carry grief, make difficult decisions alone, sort through memories, and slowly step into a new chapter of life. This heartfelt reflection offers hope, honesty, and encouragement for widows navigating life after loss.
The Unspoken Truth of the "Help" Offer”
Widows need help navigating their new lives and completing everyday tasks. This blog post gives advice for new widows and supporters on ways help can be offered and received.
What No One Tells You About the First Days of Widowhood
No one can truly prepare you for the first weeks of widowhood. While the world tells you to ‘take it one day at a time,’ in the beginning even a day feels too big. Life shrinks to the next ten minutes: the next phone call, the next decision, or simply surviving the silence of the coming night.
A Gentle Place to Begin
After loss, re-entering the world can feel overwhelming and unfamiliar. This post introduces L.I.V.E. Local Gatherings—gentle, pressure-free spaces where widows can take small steps back toward connection and community at their own pace. If you’ve been longing for a place to simply show up as you are, this may be a meaningful place to begin.
Valentine’s Day as a Widow: How to L.I.V.E. Through It with Courage and Compassion
Valentine’s Day after loss can feel overwhelming, especially when the world seems filled with reminders of what’s missing. This gentle guide offers a compassionate way to move through the day using the L.I.V.E. framework—honoring your grief while taking small, meaningful steps forward. If you’re navigating love and loss at the same time, you are not alone.
I Hope You Understand
It is inevitable that situations will arise that you cannot possibly know about in advance to prepare for. Little things seem bigger, and my fun melts away super-fast.
How to L.I.V.E.—May Edition
This month, with Spring just around the corner, we wanted to focus on new beginnings and renewal. See if any of these resonate for you.
Meet Cindi: Coaching Profile
For Cindi, coaching helps widows move beyond the paralysis of grief. “You’re afraid to try anything. You think: what if I try and it makes it worse? But coaching opens up your thinking. It helps you see possibilities again. And the coach doesn’t tell you what to do—she helps you discover your own path. You’re the expert on you.”
How to L.I.V.E.—March Edition
This month, with Spring just around the corner, we wanted to focus on new beginnings and renewal. See if any of these resonate for you.
What a Widow Wants
Often, after a woman becomes a widow, we get frantic calls from her friends and family members, asking for advice on what they should do. How can they help? What things—or activities or products—make a difference? Are there alternatives to just sending flowers?
Meet Diane: Coaching Spotlight
Seeing a splendid horizon with potential of new beginnings is refreshing. Stepping into activities, venturing places you’ve never gone, giving yourself permission to smile and “just do it” is such a restorative transformation from being down and out.
Questions with Karyl
These are real questions and real challenges. What many widows don't realize is that countless others are asking these same questions. Yet widows often don't know where to turn. They fear judgment from well-meaning family and friends who, despite caring deeply, simply don't "get it." They may feel embarrassed or uncomfortable asking, and there seems to be nowhere to find answers.
The Perils of New Year’s Eve
This New Year’s Eve, 2024, I want to reach out and acknowledge those of you who are early in grief and for whom this holiday may hit heavy and hard. We see you, and we understand. And we want to offer you some insight from some of us who have been on the same path.
Paisley Pillars of Healing
Research shows that these activities transform grief into resilience and our six Pillars of Healing are embedded in every activity and program we offer. Each on its own provides relief and supports a widow’s well-being, providing a stable, grounding place to rest. Combined, they hold space for healing, like then pillars of a building hold up the roof, containing and describing an open protected space within.